Have your ever wondered exactly what the new phrase, "carbon footprint" is describing? According to definition, our carbon footprint is the "total set of greenhouse gas emissions caused both directly and indirectly by an individual, organization, event or product”. These CO2 emissions may wreck havoc with the environment of our planet, and in recent years, much concern has been raised about how to limit them in our activities of daily living. The method of transforming a tree into a book, newspaper, magazine, or advertising flyer has come under scrutiny because of the amount of gas emissions created in the transformation. Green publishing is an effort to reduce the size of the footprint in this process by making conscious choices to conserve virgin wood fibre.
The publishing industry, in addition to other readable materials puts out over 250,000 pages of new advertising every year. At present, only about 15% of published materials come from green publishing, using recycled paper. This actually represents a significant increase in the last four years.
When one looks at the entire process of tree to book, there are several aspects to consider. Logging outside of tree farms affects land conditions and wild life environments. Pulp mills must deal with water, energy and pollution issues. Transportation also uses fuel and increases gas emissions, polluting the air further. The printing process incorporates chemicals and uses up natural resources. Finally, there is the waste clogging up the landfills. Success with green publishing can impact all steps as more recycled paper is used requiring less virgin tree fibre from naturally forested trees and resulting in less waste.
Since the purpose of green publishing is to lessen the impact of publishing activities both in the community and on the environment, several approaches may be incorporated in this effort. One possibility is to encourage the use of digital books, not as a replacement, but as a supplement to lessen the need for all the hard copies currently being produced. Digital books can be made more appealing with the addition of audio, video, and advertising. This might also reduce the amount of paper advertising that is part of the footprint problem.
While green publishing can address one aspect of the carbon emissions dilemma, creating a publishing environment that is willing to spend the extra money to convert to recycling manufacturing is another issue. Changeover will be costly, which in turn will raise the prices of books, at least initially. Since the majority of systems are set up to handle virgin wood fibre, owners may be reluctant to invest in conversion machinery at this time. On the other hand, industry responds to demand, and as public awareness and concern increases, the demand for greener products will perhaps stimulate a positive response. At a fraction of the energy and chemicals, the recycling process could significantly reduce our carbon imprint in this area.
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